Reflections: A Follow Up To Reservations
by DeBo81
Summary: One shot follow up to "Reservations" and "Reservations 2.0"  19 years after the wedding, Kate takes a look back at her life as Mrs. Kate Castle.


"Reflections"

"_Change is the essence of life. Be willing to surrender what you are for what you could become_." ~Unknown

Kate sat at her antique desk staring at the blinking cursor on the screen. Four weeks had passed since the meeting at the publisher's office. Four weeks since she'd been asked to write an autobiography focusing on her life as Mrs. Rick Castle. Four weeks of starting and deleting. Four weeks without a single word to show for all her time and energy spent on this project and Kate feared that if she stressed about this any more, she'd develop an ulcer.

It wasn't the writing that daunted her; since marrying Rick nineteen years earlier, she'd gone from helping him with his Nikki Heat books to co-authoring a series of spy novels with him and then even penning her own line of young adult mysteries. No, what bothered her was the personal nature of the autobiography. She struggled with what to write because not only did she hate revealing so much of herself to the public eye, but the author in her, critically didn't see much about her life that the public would really be interested in.

Normally Kate would never have accepted the request to write something like this, but the coming months would be big ones in the Castle home, and Jarrod, their publicist, insisted that her biography would endure them even more to the public. Kate would be opening her recovery center for victims of violent crime before the end of summer, and in about three weeks, Rick would be making his formal announcement to run for mayor. Both of these endeavors would take public support and if writing her story could garner that support, then she felt like it was something she had to do.

The sound of keys in the front door caught Kate's attention. Rick and their youngest son, eight year old Nate had returned from their bike ride. After Rick's heart "episode" the year before, Nate and Rick made it a Sunday morning tradition to go for a long run or bike ride each week. This served two important purposes. One, to encourage a healthier lifestyle for Rick, who just celebrated his sixtieth birthday and two, to capitalize on the the precious father/son time that they no longer took for granted.

Nate ran past the office door on his way toward the stairs.

"Hi Mom! Bye Mom!"

Rick came into their office and plopped down in his desk chair while wiping his sweaty brow with a towel.

"What was that all about? No time for Mom anymore?" Kate asked.

"No, Esposito called while we were out. He's taking Desi to see the new "Ninja King" movie this afternoon and invited Nate along. He'll be here in a few minutes to pick him up. I told him he had to shower and change before he could go, so he's in a rush."

"Well at least that explains it. Heaven forbid his mother stand between him and "Ninja King," Kate laughed.

Rick leaned over and looked at Kate's computer screen. "Working on the autobiography again?"

"If you can call it that. This is so much harder than I thought it would be. I've probably started this a dozen times but end up scrapping it all."

"Have you made an outline of what you want to cover?"

"No, because I don't really know what I want to include. I don't know what in my life would really make people pick up this book let alone buy it."

"I think you should just be honest. People crave that. We live in a world where everything is created and manipulated. I think just showing the reader "everyday Kate" will help people relate to you but at the same time let people get a taste of excitement which will hook them. After all, many of them will relate to being a woman or a parent or child or spouse or friend, but how many of them have been a homicide detective, police chief, the person behind one of the most loved literary characters in modern literature, an author, entrepreneur, and hopefully the wife of New York City's next mayor? You're in a unique position of being both a quote unquote normal person and a celebrity. People love that. It's very Princess Diana or Grace Kelly."

"I do not compare to either of them. When you talk about it, it all sounds very glamorous and sensational, but you know me, I'm not either."

"I beg to differ my Dear, I've always thought you were both."

Kate just rolled her eyes and sighed.

Rick rolled his chair closer to his wife. "I think what you need is a solid place to start from. Why don't you go back and read your journal entries in order and then whenever something makes you smile or cry or laugh or whatever, make a note of it. Then you'll have a chronological outline to work with. From there you can add as much or as little as you want, and soon you'll have the makings of a great autobiography."

"You make it sound so simple."

"I don't know about simple, but maybe not as hard as you're afraid it might be."

"So you think I'm afraid?" she asked.

Rick's gaze bore deep into hers, searching her before answering. "What I think, is that it's always been hard for you to find a balance between letting go of the past and still savoring the memories that make us who we are. Your life and privacy are very dear to you and letting anyone into it, let alone a couple million strangers, is something that frightens you. But what you need to remember is that as the author you get to control what you share and the tone that takes. If people read your book and feel that you've been upfront with them, whether you share all the dirty details or not, they will accept it. If they want to buy the book and read it a hundred times that's their choice. How you share your life is yours."

Just then there was a knock on the door.

"Esposito must be here." Rick stood and squeezed his wife's shoulder as he passed.

Expecting the guys to hang out by themselves for a few minutes, Kate opened a desk drawer and pulled out her digital journal. Maybe Rick was on to something. After all, what was a journal, but an autobiography? Sure it would take a lot of work before she had it made into something she'd be willing to publish, but at least it was a start, which was more than she had now, after almost a month.

Just then Kate heard Alexis' voice instead of Esposito's. She got up to see her step daughter.

"Alexis! What a nice surprise!" Rick said and then gave his two grandsons quick hugs before they hugged Kate and then ran off to find their uncle, Nate.

"Surprise? Did you forget that you said you'd watch Matt and Joey for me today? Ash and I have tickets for 'Dame de la Lumière' tonight."

"Oh, that was today? I did forget, but that's fine. I don't have plans."

"You're sure?"

"Of course!" Kate answered. "You know the boys are always welcome here."

"Yeah! In fact, Esposito will be here soon to take Desi and Nate to the movies. Have the boys seen "Ninja King" yet? I can take them along and then we can all hit Burger Barn. It'll be fun."

"They saw it Friday, but I know they'd love to see it again. Thanks Dad!"

"No problem!"

"Well, I'd love to stay and talk, but I have a hair appointment in less than an hour."

"Have fun and don't worry about rushing back. Since there's no school tomorrow, if you want the boys to stay here tonight, we 'd be happy to have them stay," Kate said.

"Great, I'll check in later to see how things are going." Alexis hugged her parents before calling out to her sons. "Bye boys! Be good for Gram and Grandpa!"

"We will" came the reply.

As Alexis opened the door to leave, the Esposito men arrived. They greeted each other in passing before Alexis entered the elevator and the guys stepped into the loft.

Castle patted Javier's shoulder and high fived nine year old Desi. "Slight change of plans, my grandkids are here for the day. Mind if we all join you?"

The quiet child's serious brown eyes lit up. "Are they in the playroom?"

"No, I think they're up in Nate's room. Why don't you go find them?"

Not needing to be told twice, the boy ran off to find his friends.

"You coming too, Becks?"

Although Kate almost always went by her married name now that she was no longer on the force, Kevin and Javier often still called her Beckett or Becks. It just felt natural.

"Not this time. I have work I really need to do, and since I'll have an empty house for once. I really should capitalize on that."

"Where's the rest of your crew today?"

Rick briefly interrupted, "While you guys talk, I'm going to go clean up and get changed. Be back in a few minutes."

Kate nodded at her husband before answering her friend. "With the long weekend, our other three have completely disappeared. Since Liam is going to Penn State in the fall, and Grady is thinking about going there next year too, Ryan took the boys to check out the campus, and Elsie and Charlie are at friends' houses. I doubt I'll see either of them before dinner tomorrow."

"And your dad?"

"Fishing trip."

"This place is rarely quiet so I'm glad you're getting a chance to enjoy it it."

Kate chuckled at the thought of enjoying this time. This project she was working on was far from enjoyable so far.

"Is Lanie still in Atlanta?"

"Yeah, she and Pam are almost done sorting through their mom's stuff and fixing up her place. She'll be home late tonight. Hopefully the next time she goes down, they'll be able to put the condo up for sale."

"It'll be nice when everything is all cleared up, it's been a rough year for them. First dealing with their mom's Alzheimer's and her passing, and now with all this red tape concerning her property."

"Was sorting out Martha's will and estate this complicated?" Javier asked.

"No, thankfully right after Bennet died and before she started failing, she put Rick's name on everything. It's was actually fairly simple."

"Be grateful! I think Lanie has spent more time in Georgia the last three months than here."

"It'll be good for all of you when she can come back and stay. How's Desi taking it all?"

"During the week when he's busy with school and soccer, he doesn't seem to notice much, but the weekends when he'd normally be spending more time with us, you can tell it bothers him that she's gone. That's why I've been trying to keep him occupied with fun things like Ninja King, or last weekend we hit the new Legoland."

"You're a great dad."

Esposito smiled shyly. "You're a pretty good parent yourself! Who would have guessed twenty five years ago when Ryan and us all became a team that now between the three of us we have thirteen kids and two grandchildren!"

"I don't know. I think picturing you boys as dads was never a stretch. Even if you would have told me then that Ryan would have seven kids, I wouldn't have been that shocked. But it would have taken a lot of convincing to get me to believe that I'd be a step mother to one child, let alone that I would have four more of my own!"

Rick came into the room for the end of Kate's statement. "I don't know why you're so surprised. I knew from the first day I met you that I was gonna marry you and make a houseful of Castle babies with you."

"Really? From the first day?"

"Well, maybe the second." Rick quickly pecked his wife on her smiling lips and then turned toward the stairs. "Time for Ninja King, boys!" he shouted. "Last one out the door buys the nachos!"

Four pairs of sneaker clad feet raced down the steps, past the adults and out into the hall.

"Have fun guys! I want to hear all about it when you get home!" Kate called to the retreating backs before shutting the door.

Kate looked around the loft, now twice the size it was when she first moved in, since they'd bought the neighboring unit and had it all remolded into one large unit for their expanding family.

It was too big right now; too quiet. Kate grabbed her keys, her laptop and her journal and headed upstairs to the rooftop garden to begin reading through twenty years of memories.

XXXXXXXXXX

The hours passed quickly as Kate read through her journal, reviving memories that had been lost or dulled by time. Rick had been right. Reading through the journal brought everything to a new light, and although she didn't yet know what exactly she'd put in the book, she at least now had a basic foundation to begin with..

The open document on her computer now had the beginnings of a chronological list of events that she felt were noteworthy, at least to herself, if not to an audience. Kate reread her notes...

_9/21/13: Rick and I were married at dusk on our rooftop._

_1/24/14: Rick bet me $100 that I was pregnant. I hadn't noticed any symptoms so I took him up on it and then took the test. He was right. I paid him and he went out and promptly spent it all on the largest teddy bear I've ever seen._

_3/1/14: Jenny and Kevin welcomed twin girls, Kylee and Bridget Ryan. _

_5/10/14: The day before Mother's day, Alexis and Rick joined me for my ultrasound. It was a boy! We were were thrilled. We began the name game. I found out that Alexis' middle name is Harper, after the author Harper Lee. We agreed to keep the tradition and narrow our choices to that of beloved writers._

_9/12/14: I began a one year leave of absence from the department, but convinced Ryan and Esposito to keep me in the loop. I may not have been on duty, but it was not uncommon for our group of friends to sit around at one of our homes or the Old Haunt, working a case while hanging out. We couldn't help it. It's in out blood._

_9/21/14: Rick and I celebrated our one year anniversary in the hospital anxiously waiting to meet our son, only to find out it was false labor._

_10/5/14: After sixteen hours of labor, William (Liam) Alexander Castle was born. 8lb 2 oz, 22 in long. He was named after Rick's favorite author of all time, William Shakespeare, and my favorite author, Richard Alexander Rogers. _

_12/9/14: Rick began his seventh and final Nikki Heat book, "Lasting Heat". After the amazing success of the latest Heat book "Heat of the Moment" which I helped him with more than his other stories, Rick asked me to co-author this one with him. I accepted._

"There you are!"

Rick sat down beside Kate on the lounge chair and absently rubbed her leg. "How's it going?"

"Better. Reading through my journal was a good idea. I'm working on a time line as I go, basically creating a rough outline. How was the movie?"

"Pretty sweet. The special effects were amazing! The boys had a great time."

"Sounds like they weren't the only ones."

"Yeah Esposito was pretty geeked too," Rick said innocently.

Kate just smiled. Some things never changed and for that she was grateful. As annoying as Rick's childlike qualities could be sometimes, they were more often than not, enduring, and perhaps helped them both to feel young.

"We ate at Burger Barn on the way back. Have you eaten yet?"

"No. What time is it?"

" Almost two."

"I'll head down in a bit. I just want to finish up here a bit more. It's so easy to get caught up in the memories. I was just thinking about that time after Liam was born, when I was struggling with postpartum depression, and how Martha mothered both the baby and I. It was just what I needed. Between the hormones and the stress of being a new mom and missing work and my mom, I was a mess, but somehow she knew exactly what to do. She was just the right combination of gentle nurturer and stubborn ass kicker."

The couple chuckled softly at the thought.

"I miss her. I wish Nate, Matt and Joey had known her." Castle hung his head but did nothing to stop the solitary tear that ran down his nose.

Kate scooted over and reached out to her husband. With one hand she held him to her shoulder; with the other, she stroked his salt and pepper hair. He wrapped his arms around her thin frame and let her comfort him. They held each other for a while before finally pulling apart.

Rick stood and headed toward the door. "You keep working, I'll bring you something to eat up here."

XXXXXXXXXX

More hours passed as Kate worked up on the roof. When it got too cold and dark to remain outside, she went in and settled into bed to continue her work.

She read and wrote about Ashley and Alexis' engagement and wedding, which was quickly followed by Martha's marriage to Bennet Grahm, a retired real estate developer she'd been seeing for over a year.

She recalled the baby boom time of her life when their daughters, Charlotte Agatha Castle who now goes by Charlie, and Elizabeth Beatrix Castle, who goes by Eliza, were born. Then years later when they were surprised with little Nathaniel Henry.

While their family grew, so did those of their loved ones around them. After the twins were born, the Ryan clan added Grady, Aidan, Tara, and another set of twins, Meghan and Brennan. The Espositos who struggled with infertility for years, also eventually got the child they always wanted, when they adopted Desi, the newborn sole survivor of a gruesome crime scene the Lanie worked. Also, three years after Elsie was born, Alexis gave birth to Matthew and three years after that to Josiah, bringing a new aspect to their lives... being grandparents.

Kate found that, despite the reservations she'd had earlier in her life, she loved motherhood. Her children and grandchildren brought a joy to her life she never knew was possible and embraced every moment that she had with them, because she knew from experience how precious these times really were.

Unfortunately life not only started during those years, for some it ended. In January 2015, just four months after Kate's leave began, she went back to work in the 12th to become the interim chief when Captain Montgomery had a massive stroke. Sadly he never recovered and passed away several weeks later. In March, Kate received her promotion and remained in her new position for the next four and a half years.

On July 10, 2019 something happened that rocked the Castle's world in a way that would leave them forever changed. During a family trip to the Bronx Zoo, four year old Liam was kidnapped. Ron Jervis who had been recently paroled, wanted revenge on the detective and her partner who put him away years before. When he discovered that they had married and started a family, he began stalking them until opportunity presented itself.

For five excruciating days, Liam was missing. Rick and Kate were forbidden to be on the case, leaving them feeling more helpless than ever. When Ryan and Esposito finally found him, Ryan used himself as a human shield to protect the child, taking a bullet to the thigh that would keep him out of the field for the rest of his career.

This incident was all that Kate needed to hang up her badge and gun. Her family was more important than the job. She retired from the force and began writing a new series of Mr. & Mrs. Smith style bounty hunter books with Rick instead.

Ryan who had permanent damage due to his wounds would have had to either retire or take a desk job. On Kate's recommendation, he was moved up to Captain and took her place. Esposito, who killed Jarvis with an amazing shot between the eyes, also received commendations and become the head detective of the homicide department. To this day, Captain Ryan is still chief at the 12th. Esposito retired from the force at fifty and started his own private security business, and his wife Lanie, is currently the NYC Director of Toxicology.

Around the same time as the abduction, Martha started showing signs that her health was failing. Within the year, they found out that she was dying of lymphoma. Despite the best treatments money could buy, there wasn't much improvement. On June 3, 2020 Martha Rogers-Grahm, beloved wife, mother and grandmother peacefully took her last breath, while surrounded by those who loved her most.

A few years later, after Nate's birth, Rick became very restless and wanted to try something new. Kate figured it was a midlife crisis which would involve him buying some extravagant toy or starting a new hobby, and didn't give it much thought until one day at dinner he announced that he was running for City Council.

When election time rolled around, he won by a landslide. As he settled into his new position, a new, more mature Rick developed. Although while at home it still wasn't uncommon to find him playing laser tag in some sort of elaborate costume with one of his kids, at work he became a well respected politician. He was likeable and yet good at his job. Very good. He was in touch with both the upper crust of the city and the everyday man. He came up with creative and unique solutions that often worked and always made people think twice. When the mayor announced his approaching retirement, the name Richard Castle was often thrown out as a favorite replacement.

It was Rick who suggested to Kate that she should begin an organization for victims of violent crimes. The economy and therefore public funding was on another downslide, and crime was climbing, leaving more and more victims in it's wake, often left to fall through the cracks to either die or continue the circle of despair they were forced into. He knew that Kate, with her personal and career experiences, armed with her position in the community and their personal funding of the project, was what the people of the city needed.

Now they were less than three months away from opening the J. Beckett Hope Center. The gleaming three story structure would soon be a place where victims and families of victims of all ages, races and backgrounds could receive consoling, shelter, physical and occupational therapy, as well as other resources. The rooftop would house a garden, much like the one above the Castle loft, that would act as a memorial, so that those who were lost to crime would not be forgotten.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kate's fingers flew across the keyboard as she tried to get all of her thoughts and memories down before she fell asleep. Her mind was charged but her body was tired and she was falling asleep fast.

Rick turned over in bed and propped up on one arm to look at his wife in the pale light from her computer screen.

Kate noticed. "I'm sorry I'm keeping you up. I should go down to the office and do this."

He reached his free hand out and placed it on her stomach. "No, stay here by me. You're not keeping me awake, but if you leave, I'll miss you and have to come find you. And if history has taught us anything, I know that will definitely lead to us neither working or sleeping."

She couldn't help but smile. He was right. Both late night writer's block and literary inspiration had led to some of their most memorable and enjoyable rendezvous. To this day she was pretty sure that little Nate had been convinced in Rick's desk chair three days before the deadline of "Birds of Prey".

Kate looked at the clock and sighed. 2:10 in the morning. "I'm almost done for the night."

"Don't rush on my account. You'll sleep better if your mind can rest."

Twenty minutes passed later, Kate closed the computer and turned off the small lamp on her nightstand.

As she laid down, Rick pulled her to him. "Come here Mrs. Castle."

Kate complied turned so that her leg was strewn over his and then rested her head on his bare chest. "I think if it's OK with you, I want to invite everyone over here for dinner tomorrow night. Going through all these old memories just makes me want to surround myself with the people I love. What do you think?"

"I think that sounds wonderful. Are we cooking or ordering in?"

"Cooking. I want to do a big Thanksgiving style dinner."

"It's May."

"So! I can't have a big family meal and be thankful for all we've been blessed with because it's not November?"

Rick laughed, and the deep vibrations of his chest tickled Kate's ear. "You're right. Thanksgiving dinner it is."

The couple both soon fell asleep thinking about everything they were so thankful for, including each other.

XXXXXXXXXX

The next afternoon while Rick was up on the roof, grilling a turkey, Kate dashed back and forth between the kitchen and the dining room which smelled of fresh baked bread and honey ham. Everyone had accepted the Castle's invitation and would be there in less than two hours and although she was having fun, there was a lot to do, making time pass quicker than usual.

Charlie, who came home before lunch had taken the boys to the park so they could skateboard, which meant there were less people under foot but also less people to lend a hand. Hopefully, Jim would be back from the store soon and could then help set the table.

Before long, everyone began to trickle in and by six o'clock dinner was served. Kate and Rick sat side by side at the head of the giant custom made formal dining set and looked around at the faces of their dearest family and friends. Jim sat to Kate's right and next to him Alexis and then Ashley. On Rick's left were Kevin and Jenny Ryan, then Lanie and Javier Esposito, beyond the adults were all fourteen of their kids plus Liam's girlfriend Addison.

Kate watched everyone with an appreciative smile. When Kate looked at her dad it was easy to miss her mom and Martha, and even Bennet, but they were still very much there in spirit, carried on in the generations before them.

Rick stood and clanked his glass. "Thank you everyone for taking time out of your busy schedules at the last minute to join us tonight. Sometimes with all the constant activity, we forget to step back and appreciate what we have and why we all do what we do day in and day out. So, like at Thanksgiving, I'd like to ask everyone to share something you're thankful for. Why don't we join hands and then after you've finished, squeeze the next person's hand so they know it's their turn. OK?"

Several heads, both young and old nodded. Rick sat back down and everyone held hands.

"Great I'll start. I'm thankful for everyone here, but especially Kate." Rick looked into his wife's shining green eyes. "You've been in my life for almost twenty five years now, and I can't even imagine how I could have lived these years without you by my side. Thank you Katie."

Rick squeezed Kevin's hand before he was tempted to keep talking for what could potentially be a very long time.

Ryan looked at the Castles and Espositos."I'm thankful for the brothers and sisters in my life who extend beyond bloodlines."

"I'm thankful for the laughter of children," Jenny said softly.

Lanie held up her glass as she spoke. "I'm thankful, my boy Castle didn't give up on Kate all those years ago, or there's a good chance none of us would be where we are today."

"Here, here!" several people replied.

Esposito grew very serious. "I'm thankful for Kevlar. I know its saved more than ones of us."

Javier squeezed his son's small hand.

"I'm thankful Mom and Dad adopted me," Desi announced proudly.

Lanie immediately began to tear up. The months and years leading up to her son's adoption were not easy ones for them and they would never take having him for granted.

Nate who was as perceptive and lighthearted as his father felt the heavy mood around the table and decided to take action. "I'm thankful that Dad didn't do his Ninja impressions at the movie theater yesterday."

Everyone chuckled as Rick immediately struck a karate pose. "Does this embarrass you, son?"

Nate just rolled his eyes and squeezed Joey's hand. "I'm thankful that I'll always be a year older than my uncle. That's so cool."

"I'm thankful that there's only three more weeks of school," Brennan chimed in.

On Matt's turn, he barely lifted his head and spoke very quietly. "I'm thankful that Great Grandpa Jim lives here now instead of at his old place."

Kate and Jim shared a smile. He'd been living in the loft instead of upstate, for several months now and it was working out well. His grandkids and great grandkids kept him busy and spry.

Ten year old Meghan Ryan thought for a moment before speaking. The redhead was known for being a bit quirky and full of sass. Everyone waited with baited breath to see what she might say.

"I'm glad mom had two sets of twins. That way she only had to go through labor five times instead of seven."

"Me too honey, me too!" Jenn answered.

"I'm thankful Mom and Dad spent so much of their careers at home taking care of us" stated Elsie.

"I'm thankful we're half way done with this. I'm hungry," announced Tara. Several of her peers commiserated with her as they looked longingly at the food spread out before them.

Bridgett kept things moving along. "I'm thankful that I'm two finals away from the end of my first year at NYU."

Bridgett's twin Kylee, who was the oldest and perhaps most outspoken of the Ryan clan was quick to speak after her sister. "I'm thankful for that too. All your studying in the middle of the night keeps me up!"

Charlie was next. "I'm thankful I got the lifeguard job at the aquatic center this summer."

The oldest Ryan boy, Grady, was next and was sitting very close to his longtime friend Charlie. "I'm thankful Charlie finally said yes to me taking her to prom next week. Better late than never!"

Charlie blushed. Grady beamed. The Castle and Ryan parents shared a look. This was news to them. Charlie and Grady had been best friends since they were little and they'd noticed the buds of a possible romance blooming, but Charlie was very much a Beckett in personality, so they wondered how long Grady would wait for her before moving on. Apparently long enough.

Aidan piped up immediately. "I'm thankful for getting my driver's license."

Kevin pointed to the thinning hair on the back of his head. "Seven kids and four of them able to drive. This is why I'm losing my hair!"

This of course brought on more laughter and teasing.

"How about you Addison," Kate asked.

"I'm thankful for being invited to your family events. As an only child, I can't get enough of this!"

Next was Liam. "I'm thankful Addie got her scholarship so that she'll be able to go to Penn State with me next year."

He squeezed his brother in law, Ashley's hand.

"I'm still thankful everyday that Rick didn't kill me as a teenager! Watch out Grady, I've dated a Castle daughter too. He can be very intimidating!"

Grady visibly paled for a moment while Rick started inspecting the carving knife on the table.

Alexis cleared her throat softly before speaking. "I'm thankful for the food in our stomachs, the clothes on our backs, and the roofs over our heads. So many go without and we often take it all for granted."

Lex gave Jim's bony hand and a gentle squeeze. "I'm still thankful that Katie helped me get sober all those years ago. She saved my life."

Now that they were all the way back to Kate, she had to choke back tears before she could speak. "As you all know, I've been working on my autobiography and as I've looked back, I've found that even though life didn't usually go as I planned, it always worked out in some amazing way, and each of you sitting here with me today is proof of that. All of you have influenced me in such a profound way, I would never go back and change any of it. I am so thankful for every single one of you, and I love you very much."

Kate stood and raised her glass. "To those who love you through thick and thin, who stand by you in good times and bad, and always welcome you with open arms. Cheers!"

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**A/N: Hello all! I hope you're having a fabulous summer! Mine has been very busy but fun! Hope yours is too. Hey we're closer and closer to season 4! Can't wait! I hear it's gonna be Epic (Thanks Tamala!)**

**So some good news/ bad news... Good news: I didn't forget about you or about my promise to do a follow up to Reservations, although if you're reading this you already know that. Bad news: Unfortunately I know this wasn't my best work by any means, and I'm sure you know that by now too.**

**Ever since I made the decision to do a follow up, I've been struggling to come up with something I liked. I had lots of fragmented ideas but none of them ever worked together. In fact the beginning of this story where Kate is frustrated by weeks of either staring at a blank screen or writing crap and deleting it, is basically what I was experiencing.**

**I was determined to write it though and wouldn't let myself work on my next story (which is brewing in the back of my head and that I'm actually quite excited about) until this was finished, because I promised this to you and I try to keep my promises**

**So finally the other day I started writing and I didn't _hate_ it or want to throw my computer across the room, which was certainly a step up, so I went with it and continued on to complete what you've just read.**

**I hope that it was entertaining enough and conclusive enough to satisfy you. Maybe you even smiled or laughed or cried a little (in a good way), which would be really great. If not and you choose to respond, please be kind.**

**Anyway, this officially concludes the complete Reservations saga. My next story, which I hope to have at least partially posted in a couple weeks, will be a completely different line of thought. So Thank You for all the months of reading and reviewing, PMs and Tweets, favorites and follows and especially for recommending the story to your friends. You have made 2011 a fun and interesting experience!**

**Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with ABC televsion or Castle. I do not own the rights to any of them**.


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